Book picks similar to
Fitting Out (Book 1): The Friendship Experiment by Sarah Giles


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The Great Shelby Holmes


Elizabeth Eulberg - 2016
    She’s nine years old, barely four feet tall, and the best detective her Harlem neighborhood has ever seen—always using logic and a bit of pluck (which yes, some might call “bossiness”) to solve the toughest crimes. When eleven-year-old John Watson moves downstairs, Shelby finds something that’s eluded her up till now: a friend. Easy-going John isn’t sure of what to make of Shelby, but he soon finds himself her most-trusted (read: only) partner in a dog-napping case that'll take both their talents to crack. Sherlock Holmes gets a fun, sweet twist with two irresistible young heroes and black & white illustrations throughout in this middle grade debut from internationally bestselling YA author Elizabeth Eulberg.

Every Single Second


Tricia Springstubb - 2016
    That’s all it takes to turn a world upside down.Twelve-year-old Nella Sabatini’s life is changing too soon, too fast. Her best friend, Clem, doesn’t seem concerned; she’s busy figuring out the best way to spend the “leap second”—an extra second about to be added to the world’s official clock. The only person who might understand how Nella feels is Angela, but the two of them have gone from being “secret sisters” to not talking at all.Then Angela’s idolized big brother makes a terrible, fatal mistake, one that tears apart their tight-knit community and plunges his family into a whirlwind of harsh publicity and judgment. In the midst of this controversy, Nella is faced with a series of startling revelations about her parents, friends, and neighborhood. As Angela’s situation becomes dangerous, Nella must choose whether to stand by or stand up. Her heart tries to tell her what to do, but can you always trust your heart? The clock ticks down, and in that extra second, past and present merge—the future will be up to her.Tricia Springstubb’s extraordinary novel is about the shifting bonds of friendship and the unconditional love of family, the impact of class and racial divides on a neighborhood and a city, and a girl awakening to awareness of a world bigger and more complex than she’d ever imagined.

St. Anthony's Fire


Garry Harper - 2018
    A journey of self-discovery capped off by a bad batch of moonshine transforms Rabelais into a cult leader. Meanwhile, John wants nothing more than to be left alone, but is caught between the burgeoning movements unwittingly started by his two friends. Dark, caustic, and wickedly sardonic, St. Anthony's Fire casts a burning light on the absurdities of 21st century society in the form of The City. If reading it leaves you feeling frustrated and miserable, with a worse outlook on life and the world around you, then it has done its job.

A Thousand Questions


Saadia Faruqi - 2020
    Secretly, she wishes to find her long-absent father, and plans to write to him in her beautiful new journal.The cook’s daughter, Sakina, still hasn’t told her parents that she’ll be accepted to school only if she can improve her English test score—but then, how could her family possibly afford to lose the money she earns working with her Abba in a rich family’s kitchen?Although the girls seem totally incompatible at first, as the summer goes on, Sakina and Mimi realize that they have plenty in common—and that they each need the other to get what they want most.

First Survivor


Mark Unger - 2018
    With the world’s best doctors and the advocacy of his parents, Louis Unger would fight the battle for his young life. At age 3, Louis was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma. He battled this treacherous cancer for 5 years with the leadership of the neuroblastoma team at Memorial Sloan Kettering. After relapsing with the cancer in his brain, his incredible team of doctors developed a new treatment protocol that cured him. His grit and incredible attitude led to a breakthrough that would change how cancer is treated today. This protocol is now helping to save many other children who are diagnosed with a brain relapse.

A Whale of the Wild


Rosanne Parry - 2020
    This gorgeously illustrated animal adventure novel explores family bonds, survival, global warming, and a changing seascape. Includes information about orcas and their habitats.For Vega and her family, salmon is life. And Vega is learning to be a salmon finder, preparing for the day when she will be her family’s matriarch. But then she and her brother Deneb are separated from their pod when a devastating earthquake and tsunami render the seascape unrecognizable. Vega must use every skill she has to lead her brother back to their family. The young orcas face a shark attack, hunger, the deep ocean, and polluted waters on their journey. Will Vega become the leader she’s destined to be?A Whale of the Wild weaves a heart-stopping tale of survival with impeccable research on a delicate ecosystem and threats to marine life.

My Jasper June


Laurel Snyder - 2019
    The sky is blue, the sun is blazing, and the days brim with possibility. But Leah feels. . . lost. She has been this way since one terrible afternoon a year ago, when everything changed. Since that day, her parents have become distant, her friends have fallen away, and Leah’s been adrift and alone.Then she meets Jasper, a girl unlike anyone she has ever known. There’s something mysterious about Jasper, almost magical. And Jasper, Leah discovers, is also lost. Together, the two girls carve out a place for themselves, a hideaway in the overgrown spaces of Atlanta, away from their parents and their hardships, somewhere only they can find.But as the days of this magical June start to draw to a close, and the darker realities of their lives intrude once more, Leah and Jasper have to decide how real their friendship is, and whether it can be enough to save them both.

Fly on the Wall


Remy Lai - 2020
    He's not allowed to go anywhere without his sister/chaperone/bodyguard. His (former) best friend knows to expect his family's mafia-style interrogation when Henry's actually allowed to hang out at her house. And he definitely CAN'T take a journey halfway around the world all by himself!But that's exactly his plan. After his family's annual trip to visit his father in Singapore is cancelled, Henry decides he doesn't want to be cooped up at home with his overprotective family and BFF turned NRFF (Not Really Friend Forever). Plus, he's hiding a your-life-is-over-if-you're-caught secret: he's the creator of an anonymous gossip cartoon, and he's on the verge of getting caught. Determined to prove his independence and avoid punishment for his crimes, Henry embarks on the greatest adventure everrr. . . hoping it won't turn into the greatest disaster ever.Remy Lai takes readers on an adventure filled with humor, heart, and hijinks that's a sure bet for fans of Jerry Craft, Terri Libenson, and Shannon Hale!Praise for Pie in the SkyA Parents Magazine Best Kids Book of the Year!"Pie in the Sky is like enjoying a decadent cake. . . heartwarming and rib-tickling." --Terri Libenson, bestselling author of Invisible Emmie* "Perfect for fans of Gene Luen Yang and Victoria Jamieson." --Shelf Awareness, starred review* "The humor [is] akin to that of Jeff Kinney's popular 'Wimpy Kid' series." --School Library Journal, starred review

Timmy Failure: Zero to Hero


Stephan Pastis - 2020
    He is so famous that there have been seven books written about his life. Plus a movie. And so he has agreed to provide the world with his extraordinary origin story, as dictated to his biographer and best friend, Charles Rollo" Tookus.  New York Times best-selling author Stephan Pastis is back with the hilariously heartwarming tale of how it all started for our favorite clueless detective-including how he got that red scarf!"

Clues to the Universe


Christina Li - 2021
    When he dies unexpectedly, all Ro has left of him is an unfinished model rocket they had been working on together.Benjamin Burns doesn’t like science, but he can’t get enough of Spacebound, a popular comic book series. When he finds a sketch that suggests that his dad created the comics, he’s thrilled. Too bad his dad walked out years ago, and Benji has no way to contact him.Though Ro and Benji were only supposed to be science class partners, the pair become unlikely friends: Benji helps Ro finish her rocket, and Ro figures out a way to reunite Benji and his dad. But Benji hesitates, which infuriates Ro. Doesn’t he realize how much Ro wishes she could be in his place?As the two face bullying, grief, and their own differences, Benji and Ro must try to piece together clues to some of the biggest questions in the universe.An #ownvoices story.

The Legend of Grimm's Woods


Manuro - 2018
    Hocus & Pocus offers a new kind of reading experience--part game book, part graphic novel, and part Choose Your Own Adventure story. Readers can play as Hocus (a girl) or Pocus (a boy), choose a magic animal companion, and enter a colorful fairy tale forest of riddles, magical objects, and unusual characters. Succeed or fail, it's all up to you!

Far Away


Lisa Graff - 2019
    Together, they give people closure and forgiveness, and pass important messages on from the Spirit world. While CJ doesn’t have her aunt’s same ability to talk to the dead, she enjoys playing a crucial role in connecting others with their dearly departed. After all, she knows firsthand what it’s like to lose someone she loves—the only way she can talk to her mom, who died hours after CJ was born, is through Aunt Nic.But when a magician bent on proving that Aunt Nic is a fraud shows up at their shows, CJ learns an impossible truth—that her mother is actually still very much alive. Now CJ no longer knows who to trust. As she learns more unsettling family secrets, CJ must grapple with the lies she’s been told and the lies she’s helped perpetuate. And in the end, she must decide how to reconcile what it means to find her true family and home—and what it means to forgive.A poignant, heartfelt novel that explores the lengths we go to protect those we love—and how that impulse can often lead us down difficult roads.

Tune It Out


Jamie Sumner - 2020
    But Lou can only hear the fear in her own voice. She’s never liked crowds or loud noises or even high fives; in fact, she’s terrified of them, which makes her pretty sure there’s something wrong with her.When Lou crashes their pickup on a dark and snowy road, child services separate the mother-daughter duo. Now she has to start all over again at a fancy private school far away from anything she’s ever known. With help from an outgoing new friend, her aunt and uncle, and the school counselor, she begins to see things differently. A sensory processing disorder isn’t something to be ashamed of, and music might just be the thing that saves Lou—and maybe her mom, too.

Every Missing Piece


Melanie Conklin - 2020
    When Maddy meets a mysterious boy setting booby traps in the North Carolina woods, she suspects the worst.Maddy is certain she's found Billy Holcomb-the boy who went missing in the fall. Except, maybe it's not him. It's been six months since he disappeared. And who will believe her anyway? Definitely not her mom or her stepdad . . . or the chief of police.As Maddy tries to uncover the truth about Billy Holcomb, ghosts from her own past surface, her best friend starts to slip away, and Maddy's world tilts once again. Can she put the pieces of her life back together, even if some of them are lost forever?

The Exact Location of Home


Kate Messner - 2014
    Electronics are, after all, much more predictable than most people--especially his father, who he hasn't seen in over a year. When his dad's latest visit is canceled with no explanation and his mom seems to be hiding something, Zig turns to his best friend Gianna and a new gizmo--a garage sale GPS unit--for help. Convinced that his dad is leaving clues around town to explain his absence, Zig sets out to find him. Following one clue after another, logging mile after mile, Zig soon discovers that people aren't always what they seem . . . and sometimes, there's more than one set of coordinates for home.